Election Day test for Trump as America votes

A bitterly divided America went to the polls on Tuesday for a high-stakes midterm election seen as a referendum on the first two years of the mercurial presidency of Donald Trump. Supporters of Harley Rouda, a Democratic candidate for the House in California’s 48th District, hold signs and cheer at a get-out-the-vote rally in Laguna Beach, California on Election Day With control of Congress and Trump’s agenda at stake, early voting hit record levels and turnout appeared high across the country. All eyes are on the several dozen razor-thin races that will decide if Republicans retain control of the House of Representatives and Senate or if one or both chambers flip Democratic. All 435 seats in the House, 35 seats in the 100-member Senate and 36 governorships are up for grabs as Americans cast their ballots. Democrats need a net gain of 23 seats to win the House for the first time since the Tea Party wave of 2010, and the latest polls give them a good chance to do so. “I feel confident that we will win,” said Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic House minority leader. “It’s just a question of the size of victory.” Republicans enjoy a slim 51-49 edge in the Senate and are favored to hang on to their majority since Democrats are defending 26 seats, and Republicans only nine. But with memories still fresh of Trump’s upset victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016, much uncertainty remains, with first results expected to trickle in around 6:00 pm… [Read full story]